Conventional powder supply and build bins in solid freeform fabrication (SFF) systems include vertical walls attached to the working surface of the SFF machine and a permanent bottom plate that is height-controlled throughout the build process. The bottom plate of the powder-source bin increments upward during the build process to provide additional powder that can be spread above a build plate in the build bin. The build plate is simultaneously incremented downward to accept a new layer of build powder. Regardless of the size of the desired prototype, or build, a volume of powder to fill the entire build bin to the height of the parts being built is required. This can sometimes limit the ability of a user to produce parts with limited powder on-hand.
Current SFF systems have powder bins that are stationary in the x- and y-axes (when viewing the system from above). In current systems, the printing mechanism moves in both the x- and y-axes in order to deposit a binder and/or ink in the desired location on the build plate. In order to translate the printing mechanism, SFF systems have large servo and translation mechanisms, which can by heavy and take up more space than desired. As such, SFF systems have utilized printing mechanisms that are specially manufactured for such systems, rather than the types of printing mechanisms that are manufactured in high volume for convention inkjet printers.
It would be desirable to have a SFF system that is lighter, smaller, and easier to use, and would have less down-time for set up, powder dig-out, and powder change-out processes.